Finally Shining
by MoonDrippedEyes
Summary: When Trina is unable to sing at the showcase, her sister Tori takes her place at the behest of Andre. Her dream of attending Pacific Coast Academy will finally be realized as she journeys on to her discovery of hidden talents, confidence, and happiness. Couples to be determined later on. A Victorious at PCA!au basically but with twists and changes (glares at unresolved loose ends)


**A/N: It's been a while since I've written a fanfic. Let's hope I'm not terrible at it. Forgive me if it's shit. heh.**

 **As you can see, this is a Victorious fanfic. My trashness for the show was revived when I decided to rewatch the entire series. And it got me wondering, "What if we put the Victorious characters in the setting of a boarding school?" And what Boarding School is associated in the same universe in Dan Schneider's world? That's right, PACIFIC COAST ACADEMY. So yes, this is the Victorious cast in PCA!**

 **(Crossposted to AO3)**

 _ **NOTE: All the characters here are aged down one year just for my preferences. So Tori, Andre, Jade, Beck, Cat, and Robbie are all freshmen. Trina is in her sophomore year.**_

 **Here's the first chapter! Let me know how I did (I need constructive criticism pls)**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Victorious**

* * *

 **CHAPTER ONE**

Mr. and Mrs. Vega did not ask for much. On the contrary, they were pretty content with their life.

A big house overlooking Los Angeles from the Hollywood Hills, well-paying jobs, and two wonderful daughters. Because of these, Mr. and Mrs. Vega hardly asked for anything.

Except, maybe, for their eldest daughter to be less high maintenance.

"MOOOOOOOOM!" Trina screams as she barges in through their front door. "DAAAAD!"

Mr. and Mrs. Vega's footsteps thunder down the stairs in a panic, each brandishing a type of weapon when they realize that it was not an intruder yelling about, it was actually their daughter.

The one who should be in boarding school.

Who should be busy preparing for the _annual showcase._

 _All the way in Malibu._

The two exhale and then glare at their daughter. "Trina what are you doing home? Doesn't school start in a week?" Her dad drops the bat by the piano. "And it's 10 o'clock at night. Shouldn't you be in bed?"

"Okay," Trina holds out her hands, "I know it's late and that beauty sleep is much needed - not that _I_ need it for _obvious_ reasons," she flips her hair over shoulder, "but I really _really_ need Tori to come with me to PCA."

Mr. and Mrs. Vega look at each other in confusion, but then turn to Trina with suspicion. "Why?"

She groans, "Be _cause_ ," she drags the word, "I got paired up with a 9th Grader for the Annual PCA Back To School Showcase and it's a week away and I don't understand what he's saying and she's the only one who can help me!"

"Help with what?" Mr. Vega sighed. "Your sister is busy finishing her Summer School Project, Trina. You're not the only one starting school soon too."

"But Daaa _aaad_ ," she whined, "I Uber'd 32 miles just to pick up Tori! Do you know how much that cost?"

"And does she know this?" Her mom raised an eyebrow. "Did you even ask her permission?"

"Now why would I do that?" The thing though, is that Trina looked genuinely confused. Mr. and Mrs. Vega resisted the urge to facepalm and tried to calm down. "Alright, why don't you go upstairs and if Tori says yes _without_ you forcing her - and we will _know_ Trina - then you can take her to PCA with you and we'll just pick her up when we go for the Showcase."

Before Mr. Vega even uttered the last words, Trina zoomed up the stairs yelling for Tori.

"How did we end up with the youngest being the most normal, Holly?" Mr. Vega closed his eyes and massaged his temples.

"I know, Dear. I know," she comforted her husband. "Come on, let's go sit on the couch and wait for Tori and Trina to come down."

"How do you know Tori's going to say yes?"

"It's Trina. If Tori doesn't go with her, I bet it's going to be like last year's Birthweek Fiasco," both of them shuddered, "and we don't want that."

 **+RLA+**

"To _riiiii_ , come on! It's PCA! You've always liked seeing PCA!"

"Yeah! In the daytime! And not with you alone," Tori groaned.

She was minding her own business in her room, finishing the summer reading for her english class that was assigned to her by her upcoming high school teacher, when Trina suddenly bounded up the stairs and practically tore down her door with her incessant knocking. Needless to say, she wouldn't really be getting anything done tonight. She screamed internally.

"Why do you even need me to come with you? What the heck am I going to do there?"

"Well," Trina swayed into the room and sat on Tori's computer chair. "I got paired up with a 9th grader for the showcase and I need someone to be my assistant because I do not want to deal with," she shudders, " _freshmen_."

Tori gave her a deadpanned look. "You say freshman like you weren't one last year," she scoffed, "and why should I be your assistant? I have better things to do here, Trina."

"Come on, Tori. It's going to be great! And besides, Mom and Dad says you can stay with me until after the Showcase so that means you get to spend the entire week at PCA!" She finished with a flourish of hand movements.

"Wait," Tori stood up suddenly, "like, no going home? As in I get to sleep there for an _entire week_?"

"Ya-huh!" Trina said excitedly.

Tori narrowed her eyes, suddenly suspicious. "What's the catch?"

"There is no catch! Just be my assistant and you can sleep on the extra bed in my room. My roommate isn't arriving until 2 weeks after the first day of school!"

She contemplated.

A whole week at PCA, with no parents, with the beach just a few blocks away, and she gets to sleep in those fancy dorms! Not to mention, PCA has always been a wistful dream of hers ever since Trina got in during the 7th grade (she's still confused as to how she actually got in).

For nine months, her sister would be away at boarding school, only going home when she felt like it (and mercilessly use Uber) or during the holidays.

Trina would regale her with stories of Pacific Coast Academy and the many adventures and shenanigans the people there would get up to (personally she's more impressed that there's a Sushi restaurant onsite at the campus as well as a movie theater because what school has their own sushi place?) So yes, Tori always loved it when they visited Trina or when there was a showcase or performance at school because it gave her a glimpse of the stories Trina told (mind you, she's aware of her sister's "embellishing tactics" but she's seen the website; the school is _awesome_ ).

It would be a glorious experience.

The only downside is that she'd miss the first three days of her school since Sherwood High starts on a Wednesday. (This always bothered her; why couldn't they start on a _Monday_? And she'd be spending an entire week with Trina alone but that's nothing new to her. If she's lived 15 years of her life with Trina, a week is nothing but dirt in her fingernails.)

It didn't take that long for Tori to pack a week's worth of clothes. Shirts, tops, skirts, jeans, underwear, and of course, her swimsuit. By the time she was ready, thirty minutes went by and Tori was dragging her stuff down the stairs. Seeing their parents on the couch, the two girls bid them goodbye and walked out the door and into the uber that was waiting for them.

They reached PCA within an hour (and were charged $125 for the fare because Trina didn't want to travel _economy_ ).

 **+RLA+**

It hasn't even been an entire twenty-four hours before Tori was experiencing extreme indignation at being her older sister's "assistant" (read: slave).

From the moment they got in last night at five minutes to midnight - wherein she was tasked by her sister to fix her bed as she "didn't like to sleep in an unmade bed" (her fault) and "to please get her a glass of water from the kitchen in the commons area because I read somewhere that you should drink a lot of water before sleeping to wake up fresh and beautiful although I don't really need to", Tori has not had any peace whatsoever. She barely got any actual sleep last night. One, because of Trina and her incessant demands, and two, she was too keyed up with excitement over actually sleeping over at PCA (now this, she knows, was her fault).

"TORI!" She heard her name being shrieked by her majesty, Queen Big Mouth. "I'm thirsty!"

Breathing in deeply through her nose and exhaling through her lips, Tori grumbled and walked towards her. "What do you want?"

Trina, at the moment, was sitting on a lawn chair, her partner Andre - and his portable keyboard next to her - was sitting on the grass. "Get me some lemonade from the vending machine close to Maxwell Hall," she handed her a ten dollar bill. "For some reason, that vending machine is the only one well stocked with lemonade since all the others run out so fast."

She took it while rolling her eyes, "I don't know where Maxwell Hall is."

"I'll take you!" Andre suddenly jumps at the chance for an excuse to leave Trina. "It's actually our dorm building."

"Great!" The two walk away from the older Vega (who was still trying to tan despite the need to practice and rehearse for the showcase).

"I don't understand how you can... you know... stand that."

Andre and Tori were in front of the vending machine. There were a lot of students milling about, and Tori tried not to ogle the many shirtless guys spread out close to the dorm building. She shook her head, trying to clear the haze that suddenly appeared, and punched in the code for the lemonade. "She's literally ordering you around like a slave."

Tori shrugged as the bottle dropped. "Honestly I'm used to it. If I try to contradict her, it's just going to get messy and irritating really fast so it's best to pick my battles."

He nods, "I guess I see your point. Although, not to be rude or anything, but why did you come here if you knew your sister was just going to make you play butler to her master?"

Bending down to get the drink, she straightened up and gestured for them to start walking back. "I've always liked coming here."

She told him about how she was slightly envious of Trina for being able to attend the school. She tells him all about how determined her sister was to get in and somehow, miraculously, she was able to pass the auditions and about how she both proud and jealous because PCA was literally a dream school.

"So why didn't you audition?" The were jogging up the stairs now, and were heading closer to the place where they left Trina. "If you wanted to attend the school, how come you didn't try out?"

"Ha!" She snorts, "I'm not exactly talented. I mean sure, I sing as a hobby. In the shower. Or where no one can hear me. But yeah, I can't exactly audition if I don't have the talent for it."

Andre shrugs in a very "neither yes or no" answer. He couldn't refute her statement since he hasn't really _heard_ her sing (and with Trina as her sister? He's a little doubtful.)

Practice for the showcase continued on for the rest of the week with Tori performing menial tasks at different times of the day. Of course, she had breaks in between. Like when Trina takes a nap in her bed (which Tori took advantage of by going down to the beach. Trina later woke up pissed because she had to do things herself when she couldn't find Tori. Couldn't even call her because Tori turned her phone off _HA!_ ). But despite all the general annoyances she's had because of her sister, she was really loving it at PCA and was suddenly overcome by sadness at the thought that she would be leaving after the showcase ends.

Finally, the day of the showcase arrived and Tori reluctantly packed up all her stuff and got ready to meet her parents at the main parking lot.

Seeing her parents stand by a familiar car, Tori strolled down the the steps, her bags in hand, and sadly hugged her parents.

"Hey mom, hi dad," she grumped.

Her parents looked at each other and smiled sadly. "It's alright, honey. Now come on, put your bags in the trunk and let's go find our seats for the showcase."

 **+RLA+**

The showcase was happening outdoors, in the main Amphitheater by a large field that overlooked the Pacific ocean. The place was quickly filling up with family and friends who came to see their respective loved ones perform. Staff and alumni were also present as well as some talent agents - even though it was just the beginning of the school year.

The Vega family descended the stairs and chose seats close to the stage. However, just as they were about to sit down, a school staff member called their attention. "Excuse me," a tall man with short curls atop his head whispered. "Are you Trina Vega's family?"

Mr. and Mrs. Vega looked at each other, then at Tori, and then at the staff. "Yes, why?"

"My name is Lane Alexander. I'm the school Guidance Counselor. I'm afraid there's been an incident backstage that involved Trina and we need you to come."

Of all the things that could go wrong, her sister's swollen tongue was not even a blip on her radar. Tori gaped at the situation.

The situation in which Trina was a crying mess, her face all red, her hair all messed up, and most of all, her tongue was swollen five times its normal size.

"What happened here?!" One of the medics exclaimed.

Trina tried to explain what happened, but unfortunately, all the came out of her mouth were random muffled words. It was a good thing Tori somewhat understood her.

"Aw Trina!" She scolded her sister, "I told you that website was sketchy!"

" _Dom't lub ip im!"_

Tori sighed, "She found this recipe on a sketchy Chinese website for an herbal tea that could make her sing better," she rolled her eyes, "although I doubt anything in the world can actually make her carry a decent tune," she said under her breath. A guy in a grey undershirt and a black leather jacket standing next to her heard her and almost choked. She blushed when she realized she wasn't exactly alone.

The medic touched Trina's tongue with a gloved hand and grimaced. "It looks like she had an allergic reaction to it."

Lane looked on, worried. "Can she perform?"

The medic just looked at him incredulously. "Do you honestly think that she can sing with her tongue literally gagging her? Look at this!" The medic pulled on it, "It's the size of a golf ball and it's _throbbing."_

"Right," he said sheepishly. "Now what are we gonna do? The showcase is ending soon and Trina and Andre are supposed to close it!"

 _Did we really spend the entire duration of the showcase with Trina's tongue problem?_ Tori mused. _I guess time flies when your sister can't speak._ There was a buzz around the crowd that gathered, each trying to find a solution to the situation at hand, when suddenly, right next to Tori (where'd he come from?), Andre steps in and volunteers her.

"Her sister can replace her!" He bellowed and the crowd turned to look at him. "She knows the entire song since she helped out during the practices."

"Andre!" Tori hissed. "What are you doing?!"

"Come on!" He insisted. "You know you could do it. You've literally heard us practice the song millions of times, I'm sure you'll do great!"

"But I can't sing!" she cried out. "Are you trying to humiliate me?!"

"Just trust me," he winks at her. "I don't think you can do worse than Trina." Then, turning to Lane and the crowd, his voice boomed out, "She'll do it!"

The crowd cheered, drowning out Tori's repeated _NO!_

As the show was almost coming to a close, and the time for their performance to start, backstage crew members began dragging Tori away into dressing rooms to revamp her appearance into the appropriate performer look. What was once a long sleeved shirt, skirt, and sneakers, she now donned a sparkly silver dress, hot pink chucks, and her hair all glam'd up. With her in-ear and wireless mic in place, crew members started ushering her towards the side of the stage with Tori protesting and resisting the entire time.

Needless to say, she was not strong enough.

"And now, performing an original composition, Andre Harris and Trina - oh sorry - _Tori_ _Vega_!"

The curtains opened, her stomach in knots, her palms clammy and cold, and her knees just starting to resemble gelatin. Tori Vega was trying not pass out from sheer panic. _Fudge all the chiz! I can't do this! What was Andre thinking? What was_ I _thinking?!_

Andre signaled the drummer and as the first few bars of the song began, Tori started to sing. Her voice, shaky at the beginning, started to gain more confidence as it went on. She motioned for Andre to speed it up a little and once the chorus hit, and the backup dancers appeared, Tori Vega was finally shining.

And it was marvelous.

* * *

 **A/N: well that's the first chapter. It's just a little introduction into how Tori got into PCA. I fashioned this into the Pilot episode of Victorious (with a few little changes of course hehe)**

 **The second chapter should be ready soon. Just needed to get this out lmao**

 **So yes, pls let me know what you think (and for any typos that may have appeared and escaped my notice)**

 **-Red**


End file.
